UnitedHealth Sues Insurers

One of the larger U.S. managed health care companies, UnitedHealth Group Inc., is suing two insurance firms for denying claims.

UnitedHealth, based in Minnetonka, Minn., alleges it was improperly denied at least $18 million in claims under its liability insurance, which helps corporations pay legal bills when they are sued, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Court records show UnitedHealth submitted claims for legal challenges from physicians, medical groups, clinics and hospitals, as well as class-action lawsuits filed on behalf of 900,000 doctors and several state medical groups.

The lawsuits alleged UnitedHealth denied or reduced payments for medically necessary services.

UnitedHealth filed its lawsuit against the two insurance companies in June in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis.

One defendant, The Lexington Insurance Co., contends UnitedHealth exhausted the $60 million coverage limits of its policy.

The other defendant, Columbia Casualty Co., claims UnitedHealth has not tried to collect from the remaining assets of a third insurer, the Reliance Insurance Co., which is now being liquidated.

Under United’s insurance agreements, Lexington was the primary insurer. Once the Lexington policy was exhausted, Reliance was to be the second insurer and Columbia the third, the Star Tribune reported.

Latest Comments

• October 21, 2005 at 2:54 am

  Phrg34 says:

  What a group of useless people. UHC will never answer a letter in writing.Most often everything is simply ignored.At one point I doubted if they were literate. It is about tim... read more
• October 21, 2005 at 11:38 am

  LL says:

  Clearly UHC has its priorities askew.
• October 21, 2005 at 11:00 am

  Richard Heagle says:

  Interestingly, over the years, many sophisticated insureds have attempted to reform insurance contracts by litigation such that the risks contemplated by the underwriters are ... read more